Film Screening: Play Like a Lion: The Legacy of Maestro Ali Akbar Khan

American-born Alam Khan is traveling to India on his first concert tour without his ailing father, legendary Indian Classical maestro sarodist Ali Akbar Khan. Alam knows that soon he will have to play and live life without his father's guidance and support. When Alam feels the weight of living up to his family's North Indian Classical music tradition, he remembers his father's advice: 'Don't worry, Play like a lion!"

Jugalbandi: Jay Gandhi and Abhik Mukherjee – The Meditative and the Ecstatic

The dynamic duo, Jay Gandhi (bansuri) and Abhik Mukherjee (sitar) returns for another iteration of their well known jugalbandhi (duet) accompanied by Shankh Lahiri on Tabla. Both captivating solo performers in their own right, they have also become well known for their enthralling musical chemistry together. Abhik Mukherjee is a shining voice of the Imdhadkhani sitar gharana and Jay Gandhi, a leading disciple of bansuri legend Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia. Their contrasting yet complementary musical styles offer a compelling composite of melodic and rhythmic approaches and their performances are often imbued with a deep and spontaneous exploration of rasa (emotional essence) and mood. Their repertoire ranges from the introspective and meditative to the joyful, romantic and ecstatic. Don't miss what may be their final duet of the year!

Jay Gandhi

Shaped by years of intensive training under the legendary bansuri maestro, Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia, Jay's music is at once reflective of his devotion to his Guru and a diverse range of other musical influences. His initial training in Hindustani music was under vocalist Smt. Kum Kum Sanyal and later on the bansuri under Pt. Ronu Majumdar and Pt. Raghunath Seth. Since being accepted as a disciple of Pt Hariprasad Chaurasia in 2006, he has had the honor of accompanying him in numerous concerts in both India and the USA.

Through the years, Jay's musical journey has simultaneously led him to delve into many other genres of music as well. He has a deep love for the music of the African diaspora and American Jazz. While at the Oberlin College/Conservatory of Music (Ohio), he trained under jazz luminaries such as the saxophonist Gary Bartz and trumpetist Marcus Belgrave. He has since been blessed to have performed with the likes of Marc Cary, Ravi Coltrane, Jeff Watts, and Reggie Workman.

A recipient of the prestigious AIIS Performing Arts Fellowship, Jay maintains a busy schedule performing to acclaim for audiences across the globe. He currently is based primarily out of New York City, where he is very active as both a teacher and performer and also as a founding member of Brooklyn Raga Massive, a prominent musicians collective.

Abhik Mukherjee:

Abhik Mukherjee is a Kolkata-born sitar player of the Etawah-Imdadkhani gharana. He was initiated to sitar at the age of six by his father, Sri Tarit Mukherjee, and Sri Bimal Chatterjee, while simultaneously receiving vocal instruction from Sri Kaylan Bose. He has since taken talim from Pandit Arvind Parikh and Pandit Kashinath Mukherjee, themselves disciples of the legendary Ustad Vilayat Khan. He is a gold medalist in musicology from Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata, and has also received a scholarship from the Ministry of Culture, India.

Abhik’s first public performance was at the age of nine at the Governor’s House, Kolkata. He has since performed in ten countries on four continents. Some memorable concerts include performances for the inauguration of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial (Washington D.C.); at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York City); at the Indian Habitat Center (Delhi); on Doordarshan (Kolkata); and a summer tour of Italy, Germany, and Switzerland. Abhik currently lives in New York City and is a founding member of Brooklyn Raga Massive, an Indian classical music artists’ collective.

Shankh Lahiri

Multi-talented young tabla artist Shankh Lahiri comes from a family with a strong tradition of Indian Classical Music and has fully devoted his life to this Music. Son of the sitarist and Guru Shri Rabindranath Lahiri, he grew up in an environment imbued with the fragrance of Hindustani music. As a child, he received intensive training in both vocal and tabla from his father and went on to graduate with a Sangeet Visharad in both subjects. Currently Shankh, as he is lovingly known in the fraternity, is the devoted senior disciple of world-renowned Tabla maestro Pandit Nayan Ghosh.

He has accompanied and toured with many reputed and front-ranking artists such as Pt. Jasraj, Ustad Shujaat Khan, Ustad Shahid Parvez, Pt. Arati Ankalikar, Nayan Ghosh (sitar), Pt. Mukul Shivputra, Shri Rakesh Chaurasia and many more. He has also expressed his creative talents through singing, writing and music composition. Apart from his own performing carrier, Shankh is serving his rich heritage through teaching students in Florida and abroad for the last several years from his own organization Shruti School of Music and a Non for Profit organization Shruti Foundation in Tampa.

Currently, as a composer & a performer, Shankh has been working collaboratively on World Fusion Music projects with the musical group ‘WAHH World Fusion Band' and other musicians around the world.